Is Peter still paying the piper?

Dec 23, 2017 Editorial, Features / Columnists

Politics should not be about serving the interests of politicians, their friends, relatives, political parties or the business elite. It should be about serving the interests of the people. So President Granger’s unequivocal declaration in 2015 during his swearing in ceremony – that all who engage in corrupt activities in the past will not find solace in his Government, regardless of party affiliation or status – signalled his tough stance against corruption.
While in opposition, the APNU+AFC coalition had promised that if elected, they would put an end corruption and prosecute senior public officials of the last administration.
The President’s statement shows that he has placed a heightened emphasis on the issue of corruption. He made it clear that corruption is one of the biggest challenges facing the nation. It has stifled development and wreaked havoc on the country during the Jagdeo/Ramotar administration – to the extent that Guyana was considered the second most corrupt country in the Caribbean, after Haiti.
And while the President underlined the need for urgent action to end this scourge on society, many believe that he must do more than talk. But even though the government has taken decisive steps to tackle corruption within the state sector, it continues to persist at almost all levels of government.
The government has spent more than $150 million of the taxpayers’ money on forensic audits and another $100 million to establish the State Asset Recovery Agency (SARA), whose focus is to follow the money. While SARA has done a good job so far, it seems that following the money and seek forfeiture through the courts have become difficult tasks.
For a while, the government was on the right path to end corruption, by tracing the proceeds to the places they usually go. But now, halfway through its first mandate, that promise seems much more like a pipe dream. Except for the former Minister of Public Service, no other senior public official from the last administration has been charged or convicted of corruption.
Would a Special Prosecutor – like the one currently investigating if the Russians interfered with the US Presidential elections, and what role if any was played by the Trump administration – have yielded more results?
Many believe that the money spent on forensic audits to uncover corrupt practices, could have been better spent on improving the services at our hospitals, paying our doctors and nurses, fixing our decaying education system, keeping our city and communities clean and beautiful, providing shelter for the homeless and improving the welfare of the masses. Not to mention the repairing of our roads, reducing power outages and improving water supply.
While the government has laid the groundwork for a decisive intervention to end corruption, it has not presented a plan to the nation as to how to tackle and solve the problem.
It is true that action speaks louder than words. Tackling corruption seems to have been an ad hoc process for the past two and a half years. It is time for the government to develop and implement a concrete plan to address the issue. A good place to start is to shatter the myth that when it comes to white-collar crime, its hands are tied, because it is much more difficult to prosecute and convict those alleged of such crimes. It is a daily occurrence in other countries.
White-collar crime is generational. It has a direct nexus with corruption, but the government cannot lay charges without solid evidence that would lead to convictions. However, there are also other crucial matters related to corruption that the state should be dealing with more seriously, such as further strengthening the Anti-Money Laundering laws to prevent the secret stashing away of money obtained through corruption. It should also urgently reform the procurement process in order to prevent the awarding of contracts to relatives and friends, and to end bribery or kickbacks by contractors to public officials. Too often there are suspicions that Peter is still paying the piper.

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Is Peter still paying the piper?

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